Machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous materials



April 23, 1929. CHAPMAN 1,710,344 MACHINE FOR REMOVING FOREIGN MATTER FROM FIBROUS MATERIALS Filed May 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet INVENTOR:

ATTORNEY April 23, 1929. CHAPMAN 1,710,344

MACHINE FOR REMOVING FOREIGN MATTER FROM FIBROUS MATERIALS 2 Sheets-Sheet Filed May 5, 1928 S L A Patented Apr. 23, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

LAURANCE D. CHAPMAN, OF NEW BEDFOBD, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR, T0 HILL 8c CUTLER 00., OF NEW BEDFORD, MASSACHUSETTS, A CORPORATION OF MASSACHU- SETTS.

MACHINE FOR REMGVING FOREIGN" MATTER FROM FIBROUS MATERIALS.

Application filed May 3,

The invention to be hereinafter described relates to a machine for removing foreign matter from cotton waste, flax,mixed wool and cotton, silk substitutes, or other fibrous materials.

Waste fibrous materials collected from mills are found to be mixed with foreign matter, such, for example, as dirt, leaves, pieces of wood and metal, ring travellers, metal bottle caps, broom corn, etc.

Heret-ofore, it has been customary to place the fibrous material upon a flat table pro vided with a screen and a drawer beneath the screen which catches the finer foreign materials, the larger materials being removed by hand. This has been found to be a slow, unsatisfactory and expensive method.

The aim and purpose of the present invention is to provide a machine whereby foreign matter may be removed from fibrous materials quickly, efficiently, automatically and with substantial saving in the expense of operation.

The character of the invention may be best understood by reference to the following description of one embodiment thereof shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the machine;

Fig. 2 is a perspective View of the delivery end of the machine;

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of one of the kicker rolls;

Fig. i on an enlarged scale is a side elevation of one of the cage or screen rolls;

Fig. 5 is an end view of two of the cage rolls, akicker roll between them, and gears for driving said rolls; and

Fig. 6 is an end view of the series of. rolls looking toward the left of Fig. 1.

Referring to the drawings, the machiie shown therein as one embodiment of the invention, comprising a conveyor belt 1 (Fig. 1) carried by rollers such as the roller 3 at the delivery end of the belt journalled in bearings f on a frame 5. The roller 3 may be driven by an electric motor 7 and a suitable transmission betwecn the motor and said roller.

The fibrous material to be cleaned is placed upon the belt 1 and fed to a series of cage rolls 9 on shafts journalled in bearings on a frame 11. Each of these cage rolls comprises end spiders 13 (Fig. ,4) and inter 1928. Serial No. 274,763.

mediate spiders. Wrapped about these spiders is a screen 17 formed of strong woven wire, the meshes of the screen being of substantial size. This screen cage is nearly of cylindrical form, but preferably it tapers from its center 19 toward the ends thereof. Thus, the surface speed of the cage at the center will be greater than the surface speed at the ends of the cage, thereby causing the materials to tend to creep from the ends toward the center of the cage, as more fully hereinafter described. WVhile these cage rolls, in the present instance, have a screen surface, good results might be accomplished by forming the surface of other reticulated structure.

Intermediate the cage rolls are kicker rolls 21 considerably smaller than the cage rolls, and desirably spaced about half an inch therefrom. Each of these kicker rolls may be formed of wood and have a fluted or equivalent surface. The series of cage rolls and kicker rolls may be inclined upward from the feeding-in end to the delivery end thereof. The cage roll shafts have gears 23 thereon, and between the gears 28 are intermediate gears 25 on shafts mounted in bearings on the frame 11. The kicker rolls have pinions 27 meshing with the intermcdiate gears. The gears are constructed and. arranged so that all of the cage rolls and kicker rolls rotate in the same direction.

To drive the train of gears for the cage rolls, the intermediate gears and the pinions for the kicker rolls, anelectric motor 29 may be provided driving a suitable transmission such, for example, as a worm and worm gear. On the worm gear shaft is a gear in a casing 31, and a sprocket wheel 33 carrying a sprocket chain 35 which passes around a sprocket wheel 37 on an extension of one of the cage roll shafts, said chain passing also around an intermediate sprocket wheel 39 and sprocket wheel ll on an extension of another ofthe cage roll shafts which receives support from an upright 43.

The sizes of the gears 23 are such that the cage roll 9 next to the end cage roll 9 is driven more slowly than the lattergwhile the remainder of the cage rolls of the series are driven at speeds progressively increas in Since the kicker roll pinions are much smaller than the intermediate gears 25, and

or toward the delivery end .of the series.

the latter are smaller than the gears 23, the kicker rolls will be rotated at a speed much higher than the speeds of the cage rolls.

The cage rolls 9 and 9 are similar in con-' struction to the other cage rolls 9 of the series of rolls shown in Figs. 1, i and 5 of the drawings.

At the left end of the series of rolls is a conveyor belt l5 carried by rollers such as the roller l? at the delivery end of the belt, said rollers being on shafts mounted in bearings on the frame 49. Preferably the belt 45 .is substantially wider than the belt 1 at the feeding-in end of the machine. For example, the feeding-in belt may be 16 inches in width, and the delivery belt may be 30" in width. Mount-ed on the frame adjacent the delivery end of the belt it ar a pair of side boards 51. This conveyor beltmay be driven by a sprocket wheel on the shaft of the roller ll, said wheel being connected by a sprocket chain 55 with another sprocket chain (not shown) driven by any suitable source of power.

Adjacent the delivery end of the conveyer belt 45, a pair of cage rolls 57 may be provided similar to the cage rolls already described. Adjacent these rolls is a hopper 59 containing a comb 61, said hopper being connected by a pipe with a suction fan (not shown). Any stray foreign matter may drop between the teeth of the comb.

The belt rollers 3 and 47 may be magnetized by usual means to remove metal from the fibrous material. The cage rolls 9 and 57 may be of brass to prevent them from being magnetized by proximity to rollers 3 and 4:7.

In operation, the cotton waste or other fibrous material to be cleaned is deposited upon the conveyor belt 1 at the feeding-in end of the machine. This belt is substantially higher than the first roll 9 of the series of rolls. The heavier foreign matter will fall substantially perpeiulicular from the end of the belt and drop between the rolls, and li 'ht matter such as dust and leaves will fall through the meshes of the screens of the cage rolls into said rolls and through the bottoms of the rolls. The fibrous material is deposited upon the lirst roll and fed progressively along the rolls and is spread out and agitated in the course of its rough ride'along the uneven path over the surfaces of the rolls, and foreign matter is removed antomaticallyv therefrom. The kicker rolls rotating at high speed throw the cotton from cage roll to cage roll, and the force of throw of the material against the rolls knocks dirt, leaves or other foreign matter therefrom.

As stated, the cage rolls may be of larger diameter at their centers than at the ends thereof. Any balls of cotton formed between the cage rolls and kicker rolls will creep fromthe ends of the rolls toward the centers of the rolls and bumping against one another, will be thrown. up and on toward the delivery end of the series of rolls. The fibrous material on leaving the series of rolls will pass onto the belt 45 for inspection, and if there should be any foreign matter remaining therewith, it may be removed by hand' The material leaving the belt 45 will be discharged onto the pair of cage rolls 57 and is delivered thenceinto the hopper 59 and conveyed by the pipe and lower to a station where it may be baled in readiness for shipment to spinning mills or for other purposes. I

It will be understood that the spacing and speed of the rolls may be varied according to the character of the material to be treated; Also, the progressive increase in surface speed of the cage rolls may be accomplished by progressively increasing the diameters of said rolls if desired.

By this invention a machine is provided which will remove foreign matter from cotton waste or other fibrous automatically, ellioiently and with desirable economy in time and labor. 7 i

The term screen in the claims describing certain of the rolls is to be regarded as generic to any reticulated surface material suitable for the purposes.

It will be understood that the invention is not l mited to the specific embodiment shown, and that various deviations may be made therefrom without departing from the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

lVhat is claimed is:

1. A machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous material comprising, in combination, afeeding-in conveyer, a discharge conveyer, a series of screen cage rolls between said conveyors, andfiuted kicker rolls intermediate the cage rolls.

2. A machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous material comprising, in combination, a feeding-in conveyor, a discharge conveyor, a series of screen cage rolls intermediate said conveyers, fluted kicker rolls between the cage rolls, and a pair of screen cage rolls at the delivery end of the discharge conveyer. r

3. A machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous material comprising, in combination, a series of screen cage rolls, means for rotatin said rolls at speeds progressively increasing, fluted kicker rolls between the cage rolls, and means for rotating the kicker rolls at a speed substantially higher than the speeds of the cage rolls.

i. A machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous materialcomprising a series of screen cage rolls for progressively'feeding fibrous material along the series, said rolls permitting finer foreign matter to fall through the meshes of the rolls, and said materials rolls being spaced to permit larger foreign matter to fall between them in the course of the transmit of the fibrous material over the series of rolls.

5. A machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous material comprising, in combination, a series of screen cage rolls, and fluted kicker rolls between and spaced from the cage rolls, said fluted rolls being adapted to throw material from cage roll to cage roll progressively along the series of rolls.

6. A machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous material comprising, in combination, a series of screen cage rolls, means for feeding fibrous material to said rolls that foreign matter may drop through and between said rolls as the material is fed alongthe series of rolls, and means to receive the cleaned fibrous material from the series of rolls.

7. A machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous material comprising, in com-- bination, a series of screen cage rolls, a conveyer for feeding fibrous material to the series of rolls, said conveyer being substantially higher than the roll of the series adjacent thereto, and means for rotating the cage rolls at speeds progressively increasing from the receiving end to the delivery end of the series of rolls.

8. A machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous material comprising, in combination, a series of screen cage rolls for progressively feeding fibrous material over the series that foreign matter may fall through and between the rolls, and means for rotating said rolls having provision for rotating the roll next to the roll at the receiving end of the series more slowly than said end roll.

9. A machme for removing foreign matter from fibrous material comprising, in combination, a series of screen cage rolls for progressively feeding fibrous material over the series that foreign matter may fall through and between the rolls, and means for rotating said rolls having provision for rotating the roll next to the roll at the receiving end of the series more slowly than said end roll, and provision for rotating the remainder of the rolls of the series at surface speeds progressively increasing toward the delivery end of the series.

10. A machine for removing foreign matter from fibrous material comprising, in combination, a series of screen cage rolls, each tapering from the center to the ends of the rolls, kicker rolls between the cage rolls, and means to feed fibrous material to be cleaned to the series of rolls, said rolls being adapted to cause any balls of fibrous materials to be moved toward the centers of the rolls and be thrown over and on from roll to roll toward the delivery end of the series of rolls.

11. A machine for removing foreign mat ter from fibrous material comprising, in combination, a series of screen cage rolls, and kicker rolls between and spaced from the cage rolls, said kicker rolls being substantially smaller in diameter than the cage rolls, and driving means for the cage rolls and kicker rolls having provision for-rotating the kicker rolls at a higher surface speed than the cage rolls.

LAURANCE D. CHAPMAN. 

